dip

[[t]dɪ̱p[/t]]

dips, dipping, dipped

1) VERB If you dip something into a liquid, you put it into the liquid for a short time, so that only part of it is covered, and take it out again.

[V n into/in n] They dip the food into the sauce...

[V n into/in n] Quickly dip the base in and out of cold water.

Syn:

dunk

N-COUNT

Dip is also a noun.

One dip into the bottle should do an entire nail.

2) VERB If you dip your hand into a container or dip into the container, you put your hand into it in order to take something out of it.

[V n into n] She dipped a hand into the jar of sweets and pulled one out...

[V into n] Watch your fingers as you dip into the pot...

[V n with in] Ask the children to guess what's in each container by dipping their hands in.

3) VERB If something dips, it makes a downward movement, usually quite quickly.

Blake jumped in expertly; the boat dipped slightly under his weight...

[V prep] The sun dipped below the horizon.

N-COUNT

Dip is also a noun.

I noticed little things, a dip of the head, a twitch in the shoulder.

4) VERB If an area of land, a road, or a path dips, it goes down quite suddenly to a lower level.

The road dipped and rose again as it neared the top of Parker Mountain.

[V adv/prep] ...a path which suddenly dips down into a tunnel.

N-COUNT

Dip is also a noun.

Where the road makes a dip, soon after a small vineyard on the right, turn right.

5) VERB When farmers dip sheep or other farm animals, they put them into a container of liquid with chemicals in it, in order to kill harmful insects which live on the animals' bodies.

[V n] Their father was helping to dip the sheep.

Derived words:

dipping N-UNCOUNT

He digs potatoes and helps with the sheep dipping.

6) N-UNCOUNT: also N in pl, usu supp N Dip is a liquid with chemicals in it which animals or objects can be dipped in to disinfect or clean them.

...sheep dip.

7) VERB If the amount or level of something dips, it becomes smaller or lower, usually only for a short period of time.

[V prep/adv] Unemployment dipped to 6.9 per cent last month...

The president became more cautious as his popularity dipped.

Syn:

decrease, fall

N-COUNT: oft N in n

Dip is also a noun.

...the current dip in farm spending.

8) N-VAR A dip is a thick creamy sauce. You dip pieces of raw vegetable or biscuits into the sauce and then eat them.

Maybe we could just buy some dips.

...prawns with avocado dip.

9) N-COUNT If you have or take a dip, you go for a quick swim in the sea, a river, or a swimming pool.

She flicked through a romantic paperback between occasional dips in the pool.

Syn:

swim

10) VERB If you are driving a car and dip the headlights, you operate a switch that makes them shine downwards, so that they do not shine directly into the eyes of other drivers. [BRIT]

[V n] He dipped his headlights as they came up behind a slow-moving van...

[V-ed] This picture shows the view from a car using normal dipped lights.

(in AM, use dim)

11) VERB If you dip into a book, you have a brief look at it without reading or studying it seriously.

[V into n] ...a chance to dip into a wide selection of books on Tibetan Buddhism.

12) VERB If you dip into a sum of money that you had intended to save, you use some of it to buy something or pay for something.

[V into n] Just when she was ready to dip into her savings, Greg hastened to her rescue.

13) → See also lucky dip

to dip your toes → see toe